Defence Sec: Public response 'not expected' in SAS case

The Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said he had not expected the Attorney General to respond publicly to his request for advice. Speaking to the BBC's Daily Politics programme he said:

I had hoped that I would get some reassurance some way or the other about this, but I understand the Attorney General has responsibilities within the judicial process and he obviously had to take them very seriously. He clearly felt it was necessary for him to state publicly he was not getting involved in a process still potentially before the courts. I wasn't expecting the Attorney General to make a public response. I was asking for private advice and guidance on this particular matter."